Historical Timeline

1913:
The International Union of Gospel Missions was organized on September
17, 1913, in New York City. Mr. Sidney Whittemore is credited as being
the father of the body. Thirty mission superintendents (including 10
from New York City) who were charter members petitioned the State of New
York for a certificate of incorporation on October 9, 1913. The
certificate was recognized and granted by Mitchell May, Secretary of
State for New York, on October 14, 1913.

1940s–1956: One of the earliest efforts to
strengthen the effectiveness of rescue ministry through the
International Union of Gospel Missions or IUGM (later AGRM) was the
appointment of Field Secretary Peter Quartel of Dayton, Ohio. Quartel’s
efforts bore fruit, but for varying reasons, he was forced to
discontinue his services. Others who undertook the responsibility were
I. L. Eldridge, J. Arthur Schlicter, E. R. MacKinney, and Harry H.
Hadley. In 1948, Reverend Chauncey Berman was hired as full-time field
secretary and served one year. In the mid 1950s, the executive
committee (called the board as of 1983) was empowered to select an
executive secretary. This person would maintain an office that would
promote rescue missions and IUGM internationally. He would be employed
on behalf of the IUGM members and work directly under the executive
secretary’s committee, in full cooperation with the executive committee.

1957–1962: Reverend Ernest Tippett, who had
served as treasurer of IUGM, became the first executive secretary in
1957. Ernest served five years, maintaining the international office in
Bridgeport, Connecticut, and Winona Lake, Indiana. Upon his resignation
in 1962, Reverend Clifton E. Gregory, a former IUGM president, served on
an interim basis while continuing to direct the City Mission in
Cleveland, Ohio.

1963–1969: Reverend James B. Moellendick became
executive secretary in the mid-1960s. He established, on a temporary
basis, offices in Parkersburg, West Virginia. In 1966, James directed
the move of the IUGM headquarters to Kansas City, Missouri, where City
Union Mission provided office space. After five years of faithful
service and great progress, James resigned.

1970–1974: A man with 15 years experience in
rescue mission ministries, the Reverend Emile Leger became executive
secretary in May 1970. Under his leadership, the IUGM purchased and
moved into a permanent headquarters building in June 1971. Emile, whose
main efforts were to gain dignity and stature for the office, and unify
the members to substantially support IUGM, resigned the executive
secretary’s position on August 1, 1974.

1974–1989: At the 1974 convention in Los Angeles,
the delegates appointed Reverend William L. Wooley as executive
secretary. William had served as superintendent of The Anchorage
(Albany, Ga.), as president of the IUGM Southeastern District, and
secretary-treasurer of IUGM.

At the 1984 convention in
Huntsville, Alabama, Lloyd Olson of Campus Crusade for Christ was
commissioned to do a study of the rescue mission movement and to make
recommendations for the future of rescue ministry and IUGM. Titled “New
Perspective,” the report outlined a number of historic changes including
restructuring the office of executive secretary (which became executive
director in 1986), and creating a new track concept, membership system,
and constitution and bylaws. The new concepts were adopted in Seattle
in 1985 and the constitution and bylaw changes in Houston in 1986. The
outcome was an organization that was better able to serve local
ministries, and that was committed to expansion, education, training,
and public awareness. Eight tracks (Urban Children & Youth
Ministry, Development, Christian Addiction Rehabilitation Association,
Employment and Education, and Women and Family Ministry, Association of
Christian Thrift Stores, Chaplains, and Volunteer Tracks) served those
in specialized ministries. During William’s 15 years of outstanding
service, the IUGM office staff increased from three to seven. The office
was relocated from the basement of William’s home to an office complex,
and the new concepts initiated by the Lloyd Olson study became a
reality.

On August 31, 1990, IUGM purchased
its new headquarters building in North Kansas City, with 4,000 square
feet of office space, expanding its ability to service the membership.
The staff moved in April 1, 1991.

In 1992, the IUGM
linked arms with city mission leaders around the world to form the new
City Mission World
Association, which is headquartered in Sydney, Australia. AGRM
was host of the Triennial Conference in Washington, D.C., in November
of 1994. Attending were delegates from rescue ministries in 34 nations.
Members of its executive committee were: Chairman Charles Chambers,
Australia; Vice Chairman Reverend Stephen Burger, United States; Edwin
Orton, England; Reverend Bruce Duncan, South Africa; Reverend Raimo
Sinkkonen, Finland; Samuel Thangarpulavar, India; Reverend Dr. Paul
Toaspern, Germany.

On May 31, 2000, the delegates at
the 87th Annual Convention changed the name of the International Union
of Gospel Missions to the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions
(AGRM).
During Stephen Burger’s tenure, he continued to
emphasize mission expansion and services that sought to build up the
frontline mission worker, as well as developing a bold new program,
Rescue College (now City Vision College),
which began as an intern-training program. By 2006, it became fully
accredited as a degree-conferring institution.

AGRM also provided oversight to an
already established ministry, Alcoholics Victorious. Stephen served as
Executive Director of the IUGM/AGRM through June 30,
2007.

2007–Present: The AGRM board hired John Ashmen as
the new executive director of the association on June 30, 2007. John
formerly served as director of member services at Christian Camp and
Conference Association in Colorado Springs for 15 years.

John introduced numerous changes
to the association, including dramatically increasing the number of
member benefits, polishing publications, and empowering others outside
of membership to reach out to the needy through rescue
missions.

In 2009 the AGRM headquarters
moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado. The association held a temporary
office space downtown. In March of 2010, AGRM opened its doors at a new
office in northern Colorado Springs at 7222 Commerce Center Drive, Suite
120. The north side of Colorado Springs is home to several other
Christian associations, including the Association of Christian Schools
International, CBA (formerly Christian Booksellers Association), and
Christian Camp and Conference Association.